Ireland's goods imports from Britain fell 24% year-on-year in May to €927 million, the latest data from the Central Statistics Office has revealed.
It is the second smallest monthly decline since new post-Brexit trade barriers came into force at the start of the year.
Irish goods exports to Britain rose by 28% year-on-year in May. The fall in imports and rise in exports were both mainly due to changes in the trade of food, live animals, machinery, and transport equipment.
Trade across the border with British-ruled Northern Ireland, which remained in the EU's trading orbit after Brexit, continued to grow strongly in May, with exports to the region up 61%, month-on-month, and imports into Ireland more than doubling.
Imports And Exports
Overall, seasonally adjusted goods exports from Ireland increased by 6% to €13.6 billion in May 2021 compared with April 2021.
Seasonally adjusted goods imports increased 4% month-on-month to €8,588 million, leading to an increase of €450 million.
On a year-on-year basis, the unadjusted value of goods imports for May 2021 amounted to €8.4 billion, representing a 36% growth.
The value of goods imports for January to May of 2021 was €38.3 billion, representing a growth of 14% compared to the same period in 2020.
Geographical Breakdown
The EU accounted for 40% of total goods exports in May 2021, amounting to €5.5 billion. Out of the total, goods worth €1.8 billion went to Germany, while exports to Belgium amounted to €1.3 million.
Total EU exports in May 2021 increased by 11% compared with May 2020.
The USA was the leading non-EU destination accounting for 29% of total exports worth €3.9 billion.
Elsewhere, the EU accounted for 38% of Ireland's imports in May, worth €3.2 billion, representing an increase of 86%, or €1.5 billion, compared with May 2020.
The main non-EU sources of imports were the USA, accounting for 16% of goods worth €1.3 billion, and China with a 7% share amounting to €598 million.
